


Ways to Forgive

by miraculous_me



Series: Counting the Ways [2]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Sequel, a lot's going to happen here, chlonath
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-11
Updated: 2019-01-19
Packaged: 2019-03-03 14:32:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13343232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miraculous_me/pseuds/miraculous_me
Summary: Over a year has passed since Nathaniel and Chloe fell in love and started dating. Nathaniel thinks they are ready for the next step. However the unexpected arrival of a figure from Chloe’s past threatens their happy ending.





	1. Bouquet

**Author's Note:**

> Surprise I'm writing a sequel! I love this ship so much, when I finished WTSIS I felt like there was still more of their story to tell. I’m really excited for this fic and I hope you all enjoy.

Chloe Bourgeois had very few regrets this year. She got promoted at the bakery, found a new apartment and applied for community college. Her relationship with her boyfriend Nathaniel was stronger than ever. And most importantly, there were no pesky akuma attacks to disrupt her peaceful new life in Paris. All and all, one year after she hit rock bottom, Chloe couldn’t be happier. Regret wasn’t really her thing lately. However, at the moment, Chloe regretted standing directly in the line of fire as Marinette Agreste tossed her bouquet behind her back.

The day had started out so well. Marinette and Adrien married in a small church surrounded by their family and closest friends. She felt honored when Marinette asked her to be a bridesmaid. Their former relationship as Ladybug and Queen Bee helped bridge the gap between the two and lead the foundation for a solid friendship after apologizing for her wrongdoings. Chloe stood next to Alya and a few of Marinette’s other friends, as the bride and groom tearfully exchanged their vows. There was not a dry eye in the church.

Well, almost. Nathaniel’s gaze pierced through her from the other side of the aisle. Every time she glanced in his direction, she noticed all his focus was on her. She did look good in her bright red floor length satin bridesmaid dress. The sweetheart neckline left much for the imagination. At the end of the ceremony, her face was as red as the dress.

The reception was lovely. Adrien spared no expense. They rented the ballroom at Le Grand Paris Hotel for the festivities and decked it out with white and black decorations with a hint of red and green. Nino’s best man toast made everyone laugh and cry. Alya created a video presentation to go along with her speech. Their first dance was to an original Jagged Stone ballad he wrote and performed just for them. Everything was perfect.

Well, until all unmarried woman were called to the dance floor for the bouquet toss.

Chloe’s initial thought was to hide behind the dozen wannabe brides and watch them claw past each other for a chance at a happily ever after, but the universe had other plans as Marinette tossed the bouquet right into her hands.

The guest roared in applause. Marinette gave her a sly wink. Chloe’s stomach dropped as the men went up to catch the garter next. 

“Congratulations,” Alya patted her on the back.

“Thanks,” she said half heartedly as they cleared dance floor.

“You don’t seem too excited.” Alya furrowed her borrows. “Wedding bells not in your future?”

“It’s not that.” Chloe picked at the babies breath on the bouquet. “Things are really great right now. Maybe one day…”

Chloe watched Adrien duck under Marinette’s dress to remove the garter with his teeth. All of the single men, Nathaniel included, stood behind Adrien to prepare for the toss. Adrien flung the garter behind his shoulder. Nathaniel reached up and snached it before it could land in Nino’s hands.

“Wonderful,” Chloe muttered.

Nathaniel strolled towards her, twirling the garter around his finger. Damn he looked fine in his tux. “Hey,” he said.

“Hey yourself.” With all of the wedding prep and order of events, they barely talked all day. Chloe tugged him by the his green tie and pulled him in close for a kiss.

“Can I take a photo?” A photographer stopped them before they could kiss.

Looked at the bouquet in her hand and sighed. “Sure.” She buckled up and put on her best smile as the photographer took a picture.

“What a lovely couple,” he said.

“Thanks.” Nathaniel kissed to top of Chloe’s head. “Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to dance with this lovely lady.” Nathaniel took her hand and led her to the dance floor. Chloe wrapped her arms around Nathaniel’s neck and leaned into his chest. They swayed back and forth for a bit in time with the music before Nathaniel finally spoke. “Are you okay?”

“Huh?” His question threw her off guard. She had been distracted since she caught the bouquet. Catching it was a sign she was next to get married. As much as Chloe wanted to marry Nathaniel, the secret she’d been keeping for a year grew heavy on her heart.

After losing all of their money and with no access to her trust fund, Chloe’s father informed her of an large inheritance she would receive if she were to marry. This news came the day she began her relationship with Nathaniel. She couldn’t have this information hanging over his head on day one. She was going to tell him eventually. But everytime the subject of marriage came up, she couldn’t bring herself to tell him.

“Are you okay? You put on your fake smile for the camera.”

“It’s been a long day,” she lied. “I’m just tired.”

“Well then,” Nathaniel leaned forward and whispered in her ear. “How about tonight, you come back to my place. I’ll make you some tea and rub your feet.”

“That sounds amazing,” she moaned. Her feet were killing her. She sold most of her heels online after she got them out of storage. She didn’t need 200 pairs of designer heels, and she needed the money. it really didn’t matter much, she had to wear sneakers at work anyway. “I used to love heels, but I had go to work at a bakery.”

“Hey if you worked for a butcher you could wear heels all day,” he snickered. “It’s not too late for a career change.”

“Ugh, and smell like pork?” She stuck out her tongue. “I don’t think your parents would like me anymore.”

“Then I guess I’d have to draw you a bath after work everyday.”

“As appealing as that sounds, I’ll stick to coming home smelling like cookies to meat any day of the week.” Chloe pressed her face to his chest again. She felt his heart beat rapidly. “How were things on the groom’s side this morning?”

“All right I guess,” he shrugged. “Adrien’s been bummed his father couldn’t attened, but he didn’t want to let it damper his day.”

“Yeah,” she said softly. “Missing both your parents on your wedding day is rough.”

Adrien still had a relationship with his father even though he was behind bars. Adrien was so easy to forgive him for all the harm he’s done to the city and home life. That’s just the kind of person he was. Chloe couldn’t imagine forgiving someone who caused that much pain.

“Adrien is strong,” Nathaniel replied. “And now he has two more parents.”

Chloe looked over at the Dupian-Chengs slow dancing on the other side of the dance floor and smiled. They would take care of him.

The two danced for a few more songs before retiring back to the table. Chloe lifted her dress slightly to prop her feet up on Nathaniel’s lap. “My feet are killing me.“ Nathaniel reached for her shoes to take them off. “Don’t, you dare.” She scolded him. “My feet will blow up like a balloon and I won’t be able to get back into the heels. It took me three months to break these in.”

“I told you to bring flats.”

“That’s quitter talk,” Chloe grumbled.

“Rest up,” he patted her legs gently. “The night is just getting started.”

*** 

Nathaniel felt the ring box burn in his right pocket all night. He thought about getting down on one knee and popping the question after catching the garter earlier, but there was no way he would overshadow Marinette and Adrien’s special day. No, he had to wait it out a little longer. Besides, if he didn’t know any better, catching the bouquet set off a some red flags in her head.

It was better that way, she hated surprises she didn’t plan herself.

“Can you get me some punch?” Chloe asked.

“Anything for you.” Nathaniel kiss her forehead. He moved her feet off his lap and headed to the punch bowl across the ballroom.

“Dude,” Nino popped up behind him and wrapped his arm around Nathaniel’s shoulder. “Snatching the garter from me was a bold move. You planning on popping the questions soon.”

Nathaniel glanced back at Chloe and smiled. “Tonight.”

Nathaniel decided he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Chloe about six month ago. He received an offer to adapt his new webcomic into an animated series. Chloe surprised him that night by cooking him dinner at his apartment. While it was not a rare occurrence, something just clicked. He could picture themselves eating together every night, washing dishes together and cuddling on the couch watching movies until they fall asleep. He never wanted the night to end.

That next morning he sketched a design for an engagement ring.

“Congrats man,” Nino punched his shoulder. “You going to do it here?”

“Oh God no,” Nathaniel chuckled. “Marinette would never forgive me. But they do know. I asked them to aim for us with the bouquet and garter toss. I’m going to propose in front of the fountain at the park. It’s where we reconnected.”

“Well good luck man, let’s hope she says yes.”

Of course she’d say yes. Right? They were happy, spent almost every day today and rarely fought. Nathaniel could not imagine another day without her smile. He knew she felt the same way.

Nathaniel pushed down the small seed of doubt and returned to the table with Chloe’s drink. “For you my love.”

“Thank you,” Chloe took a big gulp. A little punch dribbled down her jaw. Nathaniel picked up a napkin and dried her off before it could hit her dress. “Oh God I’m a mess.” She groaned.

“No.”

“My feet are blistering, I cried, like, three times today and I can’t even get juice in my mouth,” Chloe sighed.

“Do you want to go home?”

“I thought we were going back to your place?” Chloe put her feet back on his lap.”

“Oh, yes” Nathaniel replied. “That’s what I meant, sorry. My home.”

Chloe recently moved out of the Dupain-Cheng’s found a cheap studio close to work. Nathaniel considered asked her to move in with him since she was over most of the time anyway, but he didn’t want to her interfere progress of becoming more independent.

“I’m pretty sure it’s the wedding party’s duty to stay until the end of the night to see the bride and groom off.” Chloe glanced over at Marinette and Adrien chatting with some of Marinette’s relatives. “I’m not sure how much more attention those two could handle. Not to mention the paparazzi outside.”

“Paparazzi?”

“Nath, baby, Adrien is a former model and the CEO of a multimillion dollar fashion industry. Of course there’s paparazzi.”

“I didn’t see any on the way here.”

“They’ve been secretly trailing us the since we left the church. Security’s been pretty tight all day. I just have any eye for that sort of thing. By now the location of the reception was leaked. I suspect at least twenty photographers outside waiting to get a pic of the bride and groom.”

Nathaniel didn’t think about the possibility of paparazzi following them around all night. “Do you think they will follow us?”

“They haven’t been following me in a while,” she shrugged. “I guess the fallen princess of Paris story is old news.”

“Good,” he muttered.

“You seem relieved,” Chloe said suspiciously.

“I am,” he smiled. “No one likes cameras flashing in their face all the time.”

“I did.”

“Do you ever miss it? The fame?”

“Sometimes,” she admitted. “And it was infamy really, let’s not kid ourselves. I craved any attention given to me, as Chloe Bourgeois and Queen Bee. But the second the scandal hit, for the first time in my life, I did not want all the attention I received.” Chloe paused, thought for a second and continued. “I never told you this, but some photographers followed me to London for the first few weeks. I partied a lot, made many mistakes and ended up on the homepage of gossip websites every weekend. Those photos were not at all flattering.”

“I remember those pictures,” Nathaniel said. Some posts were circling around social media about Chloe’s sloppy drunk escapades. He never really cared to be honest, he barely knew her at the time. Now, the thought of her being in that situation put a pit in his stomach.

“I’m fine now,” Chloe assured him. “Laying low in Paris for a while helped thanks to you. And after father’s trail a few months ago, the press gave up on me. I live the simple life now and I couldn’t be happier. Still, there are times, where I miss being relevant.” Chloe sighed and managed to put on a smile. “But tonight is Marinette’s night. She’ll be the one in the spotlight.” Chloe took her legs off Nathaniel’s lap and stood up. “Okay, I’m ready to dance again.”

Nathaniel smiled as Chloe let him to the dance floor. The reception continued on for a few more hours before it finally began to wind down. The Marinette and Adrien prepared to hop back into the limo to head home. Chloe was right, the paparazzi were lined behind velvet ropes cameras at the ready to take pictures of the bride and groom.

The last of the guest and wedding party lined up in the lobby to send them off. Adrien and Marinette went down the line until they reached Nathaniel and Chloe at the end.

“Congrats man.” Nataniel pulled Adrien in for a hug.

“Thanks,” he said in his ear. “And good luck with, you know what.” Adrien stepped back and went to hug Chlo next.

Marinette hugged Nathaniel next. “If she gives you any trouble, I will fly back from Rome and personally kick her ass.”

“Thanks,” Nathaniel chuckled. “Have a nice honeymoon.”

Adrien and Marinette finally made it to the door. They took each other’s hands and smiled as they walked out into the sea of flashing lights.

“The cab is out front,” Nathaniel said as the rest of the wedding party dispersed.

“Let’s head out the back,” Chloe said. “Well let them have their moment.”

Nathaniel and Chloe walked to the back exit and around to the cab. Nathaniel opened the door for Chloe.

“Finally,” Chloe sighed. She slipped off her heels the second she sat. Nathaniel got in on the other side. “I know your apartment isn’t far, but my feet thank you.”

“Your welcome.” Nathaniel wrapped his arm Chloe’s shoulder and pulled her into his chest. She closed her eyes. The cab drove around the block a couple of time to throw Chloe off, per Nathaniel’s instruction. It didn’t take long for Chloe to notice.

“Nathaniel?” Chloe popped her head up. “Where are we going?”

The cab stopped in front of the park’s entrance. “We’re just making a little pit stop, that’s all.” Nathaniel got out of the cab and swung around to open Chloe’s door.

“I already took off my shoes.”

“You won’t need them, come on it won’t take long I promise.” Nathaniel held out his hand and helped Chloe out of the car.

“We’re at the park?” Chloe said confused. Good, she still wasn’t suspecting. 

“Yes we are,” he smirked. “You remember when I found you over there sitting in the water soaking wet?” He pointed to the fountain. “Come to think of it, I never asked you what you were doing in there.”

“I was trying to steal wishes,” she muttered. The two stopped in front of the fountain. Nathaniel dug in his pocket. “What are you doing?”

He pulled out two coins. “Making a wish.” He placed one coin in her hand. “Close your eyes.” Nathaniel positioned her to face the fountain. “Come on close them.” Chloe gave him a unsure look before finally closing her eyes tight. “On the count of three make your wish. One,” Nathaniel dropped to one knee. “Two.” He pulled out the ring box. “Three.” He dropped his coin in the water simultaneously with Chloe’s. He expended her to turn and see him on one knee, but instead she kept her eyes squeezed shut. “What did you wish for?” He asked, trying to humor her for a bit.

“If I tell you, my wish it won’t come true,” she said.

“You’re right I guess,” he chuckled. “Honestly, I didn’t even make a wish. I have everything I need right here. Fishing you out of this fountain was the best thing that ever happened to me. Because slowly but surely, I fell in love with you.” Tears rolled from Chloe’s eyes. “You’re crying?”

“No,” she sniffed.

“Open your eyes Chloe,” Nathaniel said gently. She shook her head. “Why not?”

“Because, I’m afraid,” she babbled. “I’m afraid when I open my eyes everything will change.”

“I’m scared too.” Nathaniel felt a tear run down his cheek. His heart pounded so hard in his chest he felt like it was going to explode. “I love you so much. Please, open your eyes.”

Chloe’s eyes opened. She glanced down at him on his knee and began to sob.

“Chloe Bourgeois.” Nathaniel opened the ring box. “Will you marry me?”

“Yes,” she said though the tears. Nathaniel slipped the ring on her finger and kissed her hand.

This was by far the happiest moment of his life.


	2. The Ring

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After saying yes, Chloe contemplates how she should tell Nathaniel about the inheritance.  
> Nathaniel is still very happy.

Chloe stirred awake around five in the morning the next day. No matter how tired she was, her body naturally woke up with the sun. Nathaniel was still out cold, his arm draped over her body gently. Last night couldn’t have been more perfect. Her mind was in such a haze after the proposal, she could swear it was a dream.

She carefully reached over to the side table and picked up the golden ring. It must have cost a fortune. The design was simply elegant, the hexagon setting held a yellow diamond surrounded by several smaller diamonds. It reminded her of a honeycomb actually. He knew her too well.

Chloe looked over at her love and sighed. She needed to tell him about the money before it was too late, though she feared she was already too far gone.

Chloe placed the ring back on the table and unplugged her phone. She should probably let her father know first, then Sabrina. Although, she had a sneaking suspicion Sabrina already knew. The screen read: fifty messages, ten missed calls. She hadn’t been this popular since losing her money.

The message on the top was from her friend Lola in London. It simply read “congratulations.” Odd the last time she spoke to Lola was when she kicked her out of her loft almost two year ago.

The rest of the messages were from people she hadn’t talked to in ages and several unsaved numbers. All of them congratulating her on her engagement.

Shit.

Chloe googled her name. At least ten gossip sites and blogs had pictures of Nathaniel proposing. Shit. They must have followed them from the wedding, Chloe was so careful. How could this happen?

Chloe reluctantly, got out of bed, careful not to disturb Nathaniel. She hurried into the bathroom to call her father. He wouldn’t be up this early, but he always checked his messages first thing in the morning.

“Daddy, hi um, I have some news. Can we meet for breakfast at the hotel? Let me know when you get this. Love you. Bye.”

Chloe hung up the phone. She needed a distraction. With their engagement announced, it was only a matter of time before the truth of her inheritance came out. The press would skin her and Nathaniel alive. She could see the headline now. “Fallen heiress, marries up and coming cartoonist to inherit 500 million Euros.” Nathaniel would crack under the pressure. No, she had to tell him the right way.

Chloe began prepping for the day to keep her mind occupied. She took her sweet time, knowing she’ll be interacting with a lot of people throughout the day. Grooming herself always made her feel better. She showered and washed her hair to get the excess product from the wedding out. She finally found a shampoo and conditioner in her price range, that worked for her hair. Dying it brown and back to blonde damaged it a little, but it eventually grew back out to her healthy natural color. She liked who she was now. She didn’t need to hide from her past anymore, she could only look on to her bright future.

After about two hours in the bathroom, her father texted her to meet him at the hotel dining room for breakfast. Chloe wrapped a towel around her body and stepped into the bedroom to get changed. She had a drawer in Nathaniel’s apartment for this very reason. She left many things around his place for mornings like this. When she decided to leave the Dupain-Cheng’s, she secretly hoped Nathaniel would ask her to move in with him, but the subject never came up. Maybe it was for the better, her lease was up in a year, and they’d be married around that time.

Chloe quietly opened the door– Nathaniel was still lying in the bed. She snuck past him to the dresser without making a peep.

“You’re up early,” he muttered.

“Sorry, did I wake you?” She shifted through the dresser to find some clothes 

“Hairdryer,” Nathaniel sat up. “Why are you so dolled up? Come back to bed.”

“Sorry, I’m meeting with my father for breakfast to tell him about the engagement.” Chloe dropped her towel and began to dress.

“He knows about the engagement.” 

“I’m sure he knows too. It’s posted all over the internet along with Adrien and Marinette’s wedding pictures.”

“Wait what?”

“Some of the paparazzi must have followed us to the park. The are a ton of pics of you popping the question.”

“I had no idea, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” she shrugged. “I complained about not getting attention anymore and bam, I’m back in the spotlight. I just hate to drag you into this.” Chloe finished dressing and sat down on the bed to put on shoes. “Wait, if you didn’t know about the photos, why did you say my father knew about the engagement?”

“Well,” Nathaniel’s hands massaged her shoulders lightly. “I asked your father’s permission.”

Chloe jerked out of Nathaniel’s grasp. “You did what?”

“Was that not okay?”

This could be the lucky break she’d been waiting for. If her father already told Nathaniel about the money and he still proposed, all of her problems were solved. She wouldn’t have to keep it hidden from him anymore. This was the best news she heard all morning, but she had to tread lightly.

“I’m sorry,” she shook her head. “It’s just a little old school, that’s all. Uh, what did my father say?”

“He said, I didn’t need his permission that you were your own woman, but he thanked me for asking.”

“That’s all?”

“Well, he did get a little weird, asking what my intentions were and I wasn’t taking advantage of you. I told him about my cartoon and he was thrilled I had my own means of income and I wasn’t a leech. That’s weird right? I’m making more money than you. If anything you are taking advantage of me.”

Chloe chucked weakly. He still had no idea. “Not for long.”

“What does that mean?”

It was now or never. She had to tell him.

“Well…” Chloe turned away. Her heart raced so fast in her chest she felt it in her ears. She stopped breathing for a second, but in that second a year's worth of doubts and fears all came flooding back. “Well, uh after college who knows what kind of career I’ll start. I’ll be bringing home the bacon in no time.”

Nathaniel got out of bed and hugged Chloe from behind. “I can’t wait for that day. But in the meantime, we’re in this together. What’s mine is yours. We don’t have to start planning a wedding right away. We can wait until after you graduate or until we save up enough. Right now, we can focus on telling our loved ones. Oh and our parents are throwing us an engagement party at to hotel in two weeks.”

“Wait what?”

“It was my mom’s idea, my folks are paying for everything except for the reception hall at the hotel. Just let them have this. I’m their only son and as much as they love you, they’re a little upset I’m not getting married to a nice Jewish girl.”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “Of course. It’s fine. Hopefully, Marinette and Adrien will be back from their honeymoon at that point. And I can use more free stuff. I’ll start writing a guest list and send it to your mom. It will be pretty short, but I’m only inviting the people that matter.”

“Speaking of which, have you haven’t told Pollen yet?”

“Shit,” Chloe groaned. She left Pollen in her apartment all day with a plate of kumquats. Since there were no akuma attacks, Fu gave them the opportunity to give up their miraculous and live a normal life. They all decided to keep them, in case a bigger threat comes along, but nothing came. She didn’t mind, Pollen was an excellent roommate. However, news of the engagement will definitely spark a debate between the two about her inheritance. “I’ll tell her later. She doesn’t have access to the internet… but she can use a remote–shoot, she’ll find out. I’ll go home after breakfast, thanks for reminding me. I got to go,” Chloe started for the door. “Wait.”

“What?”

Nathaniel picked up the ring from the side table. “Don’t forget this.” He slipped it on her finger and kissed her hand. “There. Go off and show the world.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

Chloe left the apartment to meet with her father. Maybe he had advice about how to carry on with this information. She and her father got close again after the trial. He took a plea deal and luckily did not go to jail. He had hours of community service to do and his bank account was drained to pay off his debts. He was able to take job at the hotel since it did not have any dealing with his illegal activities. He sold most of his shares to pay for legal fees so new position didn’t pay nearly as much. However, he was happy. He created a comfortable life for himself on the tenth floor. She was so proud of how her family bounced back.

The staff greet Chloe with warm smiles and congratulations. They must have heard the news. It was nice to know they all still cared. She spent a lifetime disrespecting the staff, but several apologize later, they were in a good place.

Her father sat at a small table in the dining room reading the paper. He had his morning coffee and a plate of hot croissants in front of him. One of the main stories on the cover was last night’s wedding. A photographer snapped a picture of them happily walking out of the hotel. No sign of her engagement on the front page, good.

“Daddy.” Chloe said. Her father put down the paper and embraced her. 

“Congratulations baby girl,” he kissed both of her cheeks.

“Thanks,” she sat down. “Sorry I didn’t tell you last night. I was caught up in the moment.”

“No need to explain,” her father assured her. “I’m glad you’re here now. Let me see the ring.”

Chloe presented her left hand to her father. Thankfully, she got a proper manicure before the wedding. She was going to take so many pictures.

“You’re fiancé has excellent taste,” her father said. “I’m so happy you found someone who loves you and not your wallet.”

“You didn’t tell him about the inheritance.”

“You asked me not to.” her father crossed his arms over his chest. “The question is, when are you going to tell him? It’s been over a year, Chloe.”

“I know I know,” she sighed. “We’re just so happy, where we are right now. Sure more money won’t hurt. We can buy a house and we wouldn’t have to worry about money. It sounds amazing, but I don’t want it to change me again.”

“You think having money would magical revert you back to your old self?”

“I don’t know,” she shrugged. “I just know that I would screw this up somehow.”

“That’s why the money is for after you marry, then the burden don’t have to fall on you entirely,” her father reached across the table to touch her hand. “I trust you and Nathaniel to spend it wisely. You are marrying a good man.”

“I know, and I am so happy to have him in my life. But what happens when I tell him now? I’ve been lying to him for over a year. How can I make this right Daddy?”

Andre straightened his back and smiled. “I will tell him.”

“What?”

“I’ll tell him at the engagement party. It will be a surprise.”

“Daddy I can’t have you lying for me.”

“I won’t lie, I had my doubts, I didn’t know how long this relationship was going to last. Whether or not you tell him you knew is up to you. But that will be my engagement gift, I’ll tell you both at the party.”

“Thank you Daddy.” Chloe got up and kissed his cheek.

The weight of the secret lifted just a little. Two weeks, she could hold it in for two more weeks. Then her guilty conscious would be cleared.

*** 

Nathaniel dreaded lunch with his parents. They called everyday since the engagement to prep for the party. He was a busy man, he had deadlines and meetings with executives. Chloe took the bulk of the responsibilities. Even with a full time job, she managed juggle both to without breaking a sweat. What an amazing woman.

“I finalized the menu with Marlena, the decorations arrived at the hotel this morning and I have a few friends helping us set up the reception hall after lunch. We are set for the party tomorrow.”

“Chloe you are a superwoman,” Nathaniel’s mother said. “Planning this wedding without is going to be a breeze.”

“Thanks Mrs. Kurtzberg,” Chloe smiled. “I like planning parties.”

“Please, Chloe, Call me Esther or better yet, maman.”

Oh boy. Nathaniel’s mother always wanted a daughter. Unfortunately due to fertility complications after his birth, she couldn’t have another child. That didn’t stop her from planting seeds growing up about him finding a nice Jewish girl to marry. Well, she got Chloe. She was just happy he found someone to marry.

“Esther is fine,” Chloe nodded. “Thank you so much for helping us plan. I’m surprised how fast things are coming together in this short amount of times.”

“Honey, I’ve been planning this for months.” His mother reached over and pinched Nathaniel’s cheek. “Ever since this one told me he was going to pop the question.”

“Maman, stop, you’re embarrassing me,” Nathaniel pulled his face away.

“Oh you love it,” she brushed his hair out of his eyes. “You need a haircut before the party. You look like a hippie.”

“Maman!”

“What I’m just saying your hair is as long as mine. Look at him Lloyd.” She slapped Nathaniel’s father’s shoulder. “He’s the spitting image of me at twenty three, not a drop of you in there. Well except for the eyes, they’re blue. You’d think brown eyes would be the dominant trait.”

“Esther…” His father warned.

Nathaniel smiled. They did look like a family. His mother’s red hair fell down her should in soft curls. While she was not quite fifty, there were a few wrinkles on her thin pale face. His father was a different story, he was tall, a little on the pudgy side with salt and pepper hair neatly groomed. He was six years his mother’s senior, they met through their parents after she graduated college and have been inseparable ever since. Nathaniel wanted the kind of love in his life, someone to be his best friend through thick and then. Finding that in Chloe was a surprise given their history. But love was love, he couldn’t fight it and he couldn’t imagine the rest of his life without her.

“I’m just saying,” Esther shrugged. “Anywho, Chloe I was going over the guest list and I noticed your mother was not there.”

All the color drained from Chloe’s face. “I have no idea where she is,” she said grimly.

“Maman,” Nathaniel shot her a dirty look.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” Esther lowered her head.

“It’s okay, I don’t talk about it much. She hasn’t been part of my life for almost twenty year, and there is no point in trying to reach out.”

“Understandable,” Esther nodded. “We can move on to the center pieces…”

Nathaniel kissed Chloe’s forehead. She still kept to herself about what happened with her mother, he didn’t press. He knows about the divorce and the alimony payments her father made, but that was it. Seeing an alternate version of her mother a year ago helped her reconnect with her father. She said she didn’t need anybody like that in her life. All Nathaniel could do was be supportive of her decisions.

After their meal, they said goodbye to his parents and parted ways. Chloe and a few friends were going to meet at the hotel to decorate. Nathaniel couldn’t help for long. He had a conference call with some of the producers on his show in a couple hours. Production was finally picking up, they were ready to start animating his art. It was an exciting new adventure, but it left little time for Chloe. 

“That was nice,” Chloe said. “I know a lot of this party planning can be boring.”

“No it’s fine, it’s just my parents are a lot.”

“I like your parents,” she smiled. “They’re cute together.”

“Their relationship did give me unrealistic expectations about love.” 

“Am I not what you expected?” She teased.

“Oh, you are so much more.” He kissed her cheek. “I’m sorry about my mom, by the way.”

“It’s fine, I know I don’t talk about her much, and I would like to leave it at that.” she shrugged. “She made her choice to leave my life a long time ago, and I’ve made peace with that.”

They arrived at the reception hall. The large room was only bare tables and chairs–the hotel staff did most of the heavy lifting. Alya and Sabrina sat in a corner on their phones.

“Hey guys.” Chloe waved them over. The sadness in her eyes washed away when she saw her friends. Nathaniel smiled. Nothing could keep Chloe down for long, that was something he loved about her. “Where is Marinette?”

“She just left the bakery and will be here any second.” Alya said.

“Good,” Chloe smiled at Nathaniel. She ordered special cupcakes for the girls. They weren’t ready before they left for lunch, so she asked Marinette to bring them by.

“I’m here,” a voice called out. Marinette hurried into the reception call carrying the box of cupcakes. “Here is your order, I will put it on your tab. Sorry it took so long, they needed more time to cool before Papa decorated them.”

“Thank you,” Chloe took the box from Marinette. “Did you open it?” Chloe asked.

“No, Papa told me not to. What’s with all the secrecy?”

“Well, now that you three are all here I have something to ask.” She opened up the cupcake box. The red frosting on the cupcakes read. “Will you be my bridesmaids?”

“Yes,” Marinette and Alya said in unison. Nathaniel took the box from Chloe so she could hug the girls.

Sabrina still hadn’t answered. After their fall out, Chloe worked so hard to gain Sabrina’s trust back. She would be crushed if Sabrina said no.

“Sabrina,” Chloe peeled away from the others. “I know, we’ve been piecing our friendship back together slowly, but I cannot think of another woman who I want to stand by my side when I say ‘I do’. Will you do me the honor of being my Maid of Honor?”

“Of course,” Sabrina hugged her best friend. The girls cried in each other’s arms.

Nathaniel sighed in relief, that was the last hurdle. Chloe’s year long road to redemption was finally complete. Now nothing could stand in the way of their happiness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading. Don't forget to leave a kudos or comment! :D


	3. The Visit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unexpected guest arrive at Chloe and Nathaniel's engagement party.

Pollen buzzed around Chloe’s bedroom as she spread a dozen dresses across the room. She had no idea what to wear for her engagement party. She retrieved them from storage the other day and had them all dry cleaned in preparation.

“I like this one,” Pollen landed on a bright yellow dress. She bought it on a whim a few weeks before she lost her money. She hadn’t even worn it yet. A lot of the dresses she owned went unworn. She sold most of them for a quick buck, so the few she kept were for special occasions only.

“You always like it when I wear yellow,” Chloe said.

“What can I say, it’s your color.” The kwami smiled. “The party is in two hours, make up your mind honey.”

Chloe’s finger grazed over each dress trying to picture herself walking into her engagement party. She stopped at a black tulip skirt dress. She bought it for her eighteenth birthday bash years ago. She only wore it once, but the dress had some good memories.

“What do you think?” Chloe pressed the dress to her body. It should still fit, she was roughly the same size she was when she was eighteen.

Pollen flew closer to examine the dress. “Didn’t you wear that to your eighteenth birthday party?”

“Yeah, so?”

“Aren’t you the one who always says ‘never wear an event dress twice?’”

“Yeah, well that was before I started buying two in one shampoo and conditioner.” Chloe slipped off her robe and put on the dress. It was a little tight, but not uncomfortable. Right now it was her best option. She couldn’t afford anything new if she wanted to pay for the wedding dress. It was a shame her father couldn’t pay for the wedding like he hopped. Nathaniel’s parent’s offered help with some of the expenses and his new job paid him well. But the dress was the only thing she wanted to pay for alone. She had to save every penny.

Chloe examined herself in the mirror. “How do I look?”

“Sweet as honey.” the tiny kwami kissed her cheek.

Chloe finished putting on the final touches on her makeup when her buzzer when off. Nathaniel was downstairs with the cab. “Shit,” she muttered. She scrambled around the apartment to collect the rest of her things. “Pollen where are my heels from the wedding?”

“I don’t know, you didn’t come back with them.”

“Shit.” She must have left them at Nathaniel’s. With all the preparation for the engagement party, she overlooked the smallest detail. “Great.” Chloe rummaged through her closet until she found a pair of yellow flats. Thank God she chose the black dress. “Okay, are you ready?” She opened her purse for Pollen.

“I’m so excited, I haven’t been to a party in ages.”

“You know I couldn’t celebrate this without you.” She smiled. “There are extra kumquats in a plastic baggie for when you get hungry.”

After one final look in the mirror, Chloe finally left her apartment.

“What took you so long.”

“Perfection takes time.” She kissed her fiance on the lips. “Let’s go.”

Nathaniel opened the door for Chloe and she slipped into the back seat of the cab. Nathaniel sat next to her. “You look beautiful by the way.” He pressed his lips against her skin behind her ear. “Is that a new dress?

“Unfortunately now,” she said. “I wore this for my eighteenth birthday. It was buried with all of my clothes in storage. You don’t think anyone would notice?”

“No,” he shook his head. “If they do, then they are not at the party for the right reasons. And don’t worry, no paparazzi. Everyone has been hush-hush and the hotel security is tight. Adrien’s old bodyguard is the bouncer so to speak. No one is getting in without an invitation.”

“You are the best.” Chloe placed her head on Nathaniel’s shoulder. “What did I do to deserve you?”

“I have no idea,” he smirked. “I’ll let you know when I find out.”

The cab pulled up in front of Le Grand Paris hotel. Chloe and Nathaniel linked fingers as they got out of the car.

The ballroom was practically empty. Esther and Lloyd were chatting with the caterer on the opposite side of the room. Ester spotted the two and hurried over to them with her arms extended.

“Chloe you look magnificent as always.” Esther kissed both of her cheeks.

“Thank you, Esther.”

“Tonight is all about you and that rock,” she took hold of Chloe’s left hand and examined her fingers. “When was the last time you had a proper manicure?”

“Two years, I think?” She shrugged. “I’ve been taking care of my nails on my own just fine.”

“We’ll get them done together before the engagement photo shoot.”

Chloe turned to Nathaniel he shrugged. “We haven’t even started planning yet, I don’t know if professional photos are in our budget…”

“Don’t worry about a thing,” Nathaniel kissed the top of her head. “I’ll take care of it.”

“Oh it’s going to be so much fun,” Esther clapped her hands together. “It will be like mother-daughter bonding.”

Chloe’s stomach dropped. She couldn’t say no to Esther, but something about being the phrase mother-daughter bonding made her feel uneasy. She never had those times with her own mother. The closest thing to that was in the alternate reality years ago. There were a lot of things she wished she could have done with her mother, but she made peace with the fact she was never coming back a long time ago. She knew Esther could never replace her, but maybe having a maternal figure back in her life would be good for her.

“I’d love to get a manicure with you,” Chloe smiled. “It’s been too long and I’d love to get to know my future mother in law better.”

Slowly but surely, the guest began to arrive to congratulate the happy couple. Esther was right. All of the guests wanted to see her ring. Maybe a manicure would have been a good idea. Her nails were neat and trimmed, but they weren’t nearly as smooth as they used to be since she started working.

Once the most of the guest arrived, Esther announced that it was time for the toast. Glasses of champagne were passed around the room for the guest.

“I’m not going to make this long because I know Andre has a lot to say,” Esther started. “Nathaniel was never much of a talker, he finally came out of his Nathaniel calls and tells me he’s seeing someone. That this girl is special, so whatever I do try not to make a big deal out of it. I invite them over for dinner and low and behold, Chloe Bourgeois is standing at my front door. The first thing I thought of was ‘this girl is bad news.’ She was all over the tabloids and growing up, she and Nathaniel did not get along at all. But, I promised my son I’d give her and chance and I am glad I did. Chloe,” Ester turned to face her. “I am so happy you came into my son’s life. You are kind, loyal and thoughtful, and can’t wait for you to be a part of our family. To Chloe and Nathaniel.” She raised her glass.

The room toasted their glasses and took a sip of the champagne. Chloe felt a tear run down her cheek. Nathaniel pulled a tissue out of his jacket pocket and handed it to her. “Thank you.” She dabbed the tissue gently on her face to absorb the moisture, but not ruin her makeup.

Esther handed Chloe’s father the microphone for his speech.

“We are here to celebrate the engagement of my daughter Chloe, to this wonderful man who stands before us. As you know these past two years have been difficult for our family. There was a period of time where my baby girl was struggling and there was nothing I could do about it. But Nathaniel was there to aid and support her. When we were finally reunited, I noticed she had grown into a strong hard working young woman. Chloe,” he father turned to her. “I am so proud of you. I wish you and Nathanael all the happiness. To Chloe and Nataniel.” He raised his glass.

“Chloe and Nathaniel,” everyone said in unison.

The crowd roared in applause. As it calmed, the sound of a one person clapping grew louder.Chloe looked for the source of the clapping. At the entrance doors, she saw a woman in a large black hat and sunglasses walk slowly towards the front.

“Bravo, Andre,” she said, “You always excelled at speeches.” The woman took off her sunglasses. “Hi, baby girl.”

“Mom?”

*** 

Nathaniel stared at the woman in front of him. There were no pictures of Audrey Bourgeois in Chloe’s apartment. He knew her father had them hidden away after she left almost twenty years ago. Like Chloe, her mother was tall and blonde with piercing blue eyes, but the rest of her face was so shot up with botox she looked unnatural. Nathaniel glanced at his fiancee, she was petrified.

“Are you okay,” he whispered. Chloe didn’t answer. She continued to stare at her long-lost mother.

The slender woman picked up a glass of champagne from the table and raised it in the air. “Can I make my toast?”

“Audrey, you are not welcome here,” Andre said.

“Oh, Andre, way to suck all the fun out of a party. I am here to celebrate our daughter’s engagement.”

“No,” Andre barked.

“I don’t think that’s your call,” she glanced over at Chloe, who was still frozen.

This was too much for her to handle. He had to put a stop to this spectacle. No one can just pop back into someone’s life after twenty years of no contact and expect everything to be fine. This should be a private moment.

“I don’t think–”

“No,” Chloe cut him off. “Let her speak.” She clinged to Nathaniel’s side tightly and braced herself for her words.

Audrey took the microphone from Andre’s hands and stood front and center.“What can sayaw about my daughter.” Audrey glanced over at Chloe. “My have you grown. Most of you know I have been out of Paris for the past twenty years so I didn’t watch my daughter grow up in person. I had to piece together snippets on the internet over the years. I did a quick search on her last week and much to my surprise I discovered that she got engaged to a cartoonist.” Audrey shook her head. “My poor baby girl, having to go through all this red tape to get your inheritance.”

Chloe’s stiffened against Nathaniel. What inheritance? All of her money was gone, she never mentioned anything about an inheritance. 

“Audrey…” Andre said slowly.

“What? You didn’t think I knew about that old witch Millie leaving our daughter a fortune once she gets married?” She turned to Nathaniel. “How much were you going to get out of this arrangement? One million? Two? I’m surprised she waited this long to get married after her father lost their fortune. It’s rather sad wearing the same dress from your eighteenth birthday to your engagement party. You should have skipped the formalities. It would be far less embarrassing.” 

“Why are you doing this?” Andre pulled the microphone away from her. “Whatever your problem is, take it up with me in private, do not drag those children into it.”

“They are not children,” she said. “I just wanted to know if she knows what she’s doing. Marrying for the wrong reasons could get messy. Take my advice and sign a prenup.” She winked at Nathaniel and raised her glass. “To Chloe and–what’s his name again?”

“Leave now before I call security,” Andre warned.

“All right.” She downed her champagne in one gulp. “But I won’t be gone for too long. I’m staying at the Hotel for the time being. It’s time for me to reconnect with my daughter.” She turned to leave. “Goodbye Chloe, you know where to find me.”

The crowd was silent for minutes after Audrey’s departure. Nathaniel still tried to wrap his head around all this new information. Chloe was getting an inheritance after she marries him? That couldn’t be true. He needed to hear it from her own mouth. And right now, he didn’t believe anything that woman said.

“I need some air,” Chloe finally said. She sprinted out of the ballroom. Nathaniel followed. Outside a dozen paparazzi snapped pictures of Chloe.

“Chloe, Chloe over here,” they all shouted.

“Is it true that your fiance is only marrying you for the 100 million Euro inheritance you’d receive when you marry?” Someone shouted over the voices.

Nathaniel grabbed Chloe and pulled her back into the hotel. “Let’s go somewhere private.” He lead Chloe up to the roof, no one would bother them there. He sat Chloe down on a chair and draped his jacket over her shoulders. “You okay?”

“I don’t know,” she muttered. “Just when I think everything’s falling into place, my life just blows up again.”

“Hey look at me,” Nathaniel kneeled down and cupped her tearstained face. “Do not let her get to you. Your mother had no right to show up unannounced after twenty years and crash your engagement party.”

“It’s weird,” she said. “Ever since Adrien’s wedding I’ve been thinking about her a lot. He didn’t have his parents at his wedding, As happy as he was I could tell there was something missing. Like a void he couldn’t fill. As much as they try, Tom and Sabine can’t fill it. I feel the same way about your mother. When she calls me her daughter I can’t bring myself to call her mother. It’s not the same.” She sighed. “And then this woman shows up and I don’t know her. But for a half a second, I felt a little more complete. That is until she started her toast.” 

“What are you going to do now? It seems like she’s in Paris for a while.”

“I honestly don’t know. I never in a million years thought she’d return to Paris. I have no idea why she left. Daddy rarely talks about her.”

“Maybe this is your chance to clear the air.”

“She ruined our engagement party!” Chloe said. “She probably called the paparazzi too. She’s more like me than I thought. It’s going to take a lot for me to even look at her face again.”

“Understood,” he nodded. He didn’t like seeing Chloe like this. He treaded lightly on the topic of her mother for years, but he never knew she felt incomplete. Hopefully they could reconcile while she was still in town.

“Nathaniel,” Chloe said softly. “About what she said during her toast…”

“You didn’t know right? It seemed like your father knew something, but you had no idea about the money right?”

Chloe shook her head. This evening had gone from bad to worse. He thought knew Chloe better than that. They never kept secrets like that from each other. That was not how their relationship worked.

“Nathaniel I love you, so much. I would never use you to gain an inheritance, you have understand.”

“You can’t keep a secret like that from your fiance.” Nataniel stood up and ran his fingers through his hair. “How long have you known? A few weeks?”

“Two years,” she muttered.

“Damn it Chloe.”

“I’m sorry okay. When father told me, we were just starting out and I didn’t know where it was going to go. I had to be careful.”

“So you didn’t think we were going to last long, was that it? Or what? You thought if you told me right away I would rush things to get the money”

“No,” she cried. “That’s not what I meant and you know it.”

Nathaniel’s anger was getting the best of him. This was not how he wanted his evening to go. He took a deep breath before speaking again. “I think we both need some time to cool off. I’ll wrap things up with my parents and the guests. Get Sabrina to take you home. I’ll call you tomorrow.”


	4. The Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe and Nathaniel have a talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning, there is an implied sexual situation in this chapter. It's pretty SFW, but I just wanted to issue a warning.

Nathaniel painted for what felt like hours, he didn’t get any sleep after the party. It was nearly noon when Nathaniel put down his brush and stared at the painting in front of him. The once white canvas was now covered with swirls of red and orange oil paint. It didn’t look like art, but who cared? Maybe a pretentious art snob would see the rage behind each brush stroke.

He knew he wouldn’t be mad at Chloe forever. It was just a fight, he kept telling himself. But he knew it was more than that. What brought them together was her misfortune. Was it selfish for him to want things to remain the same? The answer was yes, obviously.

He needed to see her and talk this through. His hands and face were streaked with paint, but he didn’t care. Nathaniel picked up his keys and raced out of his apartment. He didn’t bother calling for a cab, Chloe only lived a few blocks away. The jog gave him plenty of time to plan what he needed to say to her.

He approched her building and rang the bell.

“Hello?” She said through the speaker.

“It’s me,” he said. The front door unlocked. Nathaniel climbed up the stairs to her apartment and knocked on the door.

All of his words went out the window the second Chloe opened the door. She was still in her dress from the night before. Her eyes were red and mascara streaked her face.

“The zipper’s stuck,” she sniffled. Nathaniel pulled her in for a hug. How could he leave her alone like this? “I’m sorry.” She muttered in his neck.

“Turn around.”

Chloe obliged. His hand roamed from the soft skin of her shoulder to the zipper. Chloe exhaled as he unzipped the dress. It must have been too tight, it left a thin red line on her back just below her shoulder blades. Nathaniel dipped down and kissed the red mark the dress left on her creamy skin. Chloe shivered beneath his touch. He slowly turned Chloe around, his kisses leaving a trail from the mark on her chest to just above her collarbone.

“You’re covered in paint.” Chloe moaned as he nibbled on her ear.

“Let’s clean up.” He hoisted her up, she wrapped her legs around his waist and led her to the bathroom.

After their shower, Nathaniel and Chloe lied silently in the bed, unsure what to say next. Chloe snuggled up against Nathaniel’s chest while he stroked her hair. It was only a day, but he missed having her in his arms. The light honey scent of her shampoo filled his nose. He felt at ease, but he knew the moment would last long.

Nathaniel’s stomach rumbled, breaking the silence.

“Are you hungry?” Chloe asked.

He hadn’t eaten since the party, even then he only had a few bites before shit went down. “Do you want to order something?”

She shook her head. “Sabrina boxed some food from the party before we left. I’ll heat some up.” Chloe pulled herself away from Nathaniel’s embrace and put on a robe. “You have clean clothes in the bottom drawer.”

“Thanks,” he got out of bed. He changed quickly and met Chloe in the kitchen. She pulled the out a plate of leftovers out of the microwave.

“Here,” she slid the plate in front of him before making a plate for herself. “Do you want some wine?“

“No thank you.”

He cleaned his plate quickly, he had no idea how hungry he was. Chloe poured a large glass of red wine and sipped at it slowly.

“Don’t you have work today?” He asked.

“Marinette is covering for me,” she said.

“Okay.”

“Damn it Nathaniel.” She slammed her hands on the counter. “I can’t take this anymore. Say something please.”

“What do you want me to say? You want me to apologize for leaving in the middle of our fight?”

“No–”

“I came here to listen,” Nathaniel crossed his arms over his chest. “So talk.”

Chloe took a deep breath. “I’m sorry for lying to you. I’ve keep this secret for so long, I thought I was just protecting you. I didn’t want to put pressure on our relationship. But after the first few months, I knew that wasn’t the case. I was scared. Scared about what I would become if I had money again. I love my life now and I love you. But money with the money, I can revert back to my old spoiled self.”

“Chloe,” Nathaniel placed his hands on top of hers. “I’m not going to lie if I told you I hadn’t had that thought. But then I realized, you’re not in this alone. You have me, you have your father and friends. We all watched you learn and grow over the last couple years. This money will not change you, I promise.”

“I’m so sorry for keeping this from you. Do you forgive me?”

“Yes,” he nodded. “But I do have a few questions though.”

“Oh boy,” she took a big gulp of her wine.

“Are you really inheriting 100 million Euros?”

“No,” she paused. “It’s 500 million.”

“Holy shit.” He would never need to work a day in his life with that cash. They could buy a house and start a family. He wouldn’t have to worry about providing. “That’s a lot of money.”

“I think this is a bad time to remind you I get access to my trust fund in two years.”

“Trust fund?”

“I thought you knew.”

“Damn it Chloe,”

“I swear I told you that.” She sighed. “I knew this was only temporary from the beginning. I tried to get my trust after we lost everything, but father was still under investigation. These past two years have been so hard, and I am so thankful for you Sabrina and Marinette for getting me on my feet. I have to face the fact that my inheritance

“There you go again.”

“What?”

“You keep think you’re in this alone, but you’re not. I don’t know the specifics of your great-aunt’s will, but if she wanted you to have it after getting married the money is for us to start our life together.”

“You still want to marry me after all this?”

“Breaking the engagement was never on the table. We’re adults, we handled our issues like adults.” Nathaniel leaned over the counter and kissed her.

Chloe broke away. “Oh God,” she groaned. “Speaking of irresponsible adults. What are we going to do about her?”

“Who?”

“You know who.”

“Voldemort?.”

“Who?”

“Oh my God, Chloe, you’ve never seen Harry Potter?”

“What? No. I’m talking about my mother.”

Nathaniel sighed. He regretted leaving Chloe along after coming face to face with her mother for the first time in twenty years. His anger got the better of him. He didn’t even think about what kind of effect seeing Audrey had on her. “Are you okay?”

“Last night was very emotionally draining.”

“I’m sorry for leaving you.”

“I haven’t even talked to Dad yet. If she’s staying at the hotel for a few days, she’s probably making his life a living nightmare.”

“I think you should talk to her.”

“No way,” Chloe backed away. “I never what to see her again.”

“She’s your mom. I’m not saying you should forgive her, she said some horrible things at the party, but you need to show her that she can’t get under your skin.”

“So you want me to be the bigger person?” she pouted. “I don’t think this is a good idea.”

*** 

Chloe took a deep breath and stepped into the lobby of Le Grand Paris Hotel. She couldn’t believe she was doing this. Her mother should apologize to her, but she if she was anything like the old Chloe, getting an apology out of her would be difficult.

“Where is she?” Chloe asked the concierge.

“The Penthouse.” The concierge said. “Top floor.” It was only a day and she knew her mother already making an impression on the staff.

“Thank you.” Chloe went to the elevator. Her hands were practically shaking as she pressed the buttons. This was a bad idea. She needed another day or two to collect her thoughts.

She knocked on the door. Her mother answered immediately. She was wearing a black silk robe and sunglasses. “Chloe, Darling.” She leaned in to kiss her cheeks, but Chloe backed away. Her breath reeked of alcohol.

“This isn’t a social call mother.”

“Oh, well, come on in. Would you like a drink?

“No thank you,” she stepped inside. Audrey had already made herself at home. Clothes and bags were scattered across the room. Half eaten room service cart was in the middle of the room. The mini bar was practically empty. Chloe had no idea her mother was such a slob.

Audrey sashayed over to the mini bar and poured herself a glass of vodka. “Sorry for the mess darling, housekeeping hasn’t swung by yet. It’s so hard to get good help these days.”

“You have the ‘do not disturb’ sign on your door knob.”

“Oh,” she shrugged. “I don’t remember putting that there.”

“What are you doing in Paris?”

“I came to surprise my baby girl and congratulate her on her engagement.”

“No Mother, what you did last night was inappropriate. Were you drunk when you decided to crash the party?”

“Of course not, they cut you off after three drinks on the plane. No, I was mostly sober when I arrived.”

“That makes it worse! You can’t just waltz back into my life after twenty years and insult me and my fiance at our engagement party.”

“I wanted to protect you from the leeches. As soon as they get a whiff of money, they come crawling.”

“Nathaniel is not a leech. If anything, I’ve been leeching off him for the past two years. He had no idea about the inheritance when he proposed.”

“I could tell from his reaction last night,” she chuckled. “It all ends the same though. You come into some money, it’s all over. Take my advice and make him sign a prenup. You don’t want him walking away half your inheritance.”

“Nathaniel loves me for me, not my money.”

“How cute, perhaps I misjudged,” she sipped her vodka. “I just don’t know the man.”

“You don’t know me,” Chloe shouted. “It’s been twenty years, not a call, email or text. You have no right to judge the man I plan on spending the rest of my life with.”

“He’s a commoner.”

“Newsflash mother, I’m a commoner now. I work at a bakery, pay rent on a tiny apartment and shop with coupons.”

“Not for long,” she shrugged. “You can take the money away from the rich girl, but you can’t take the rich girl away from the money.”

“What does that even mean.” Chloe was getting more and more irritated with her mother. She had to take control of the situation. “Listen, I don’t know why you’re come back, but it’s clear you’re only here to start some shit.”

“Language.”

“You’ve lost the right to tell me what to do the moment you walked out of my life. I don’t know how long you plan to stay here, but I want you to leave me and my fiance alone.”

“That might be a problem.” She finished off her drink. “I’ll be staying in Paris indefinitely.”

“What?” No no, this couldn’t be happening. She wanted to end this once and for all, walk out as the bigger person. If her mother doesn’t leave, how could she get closure?

“I look forward to getting to know you and Nathan.”

“It’s Nathaniel,” Chloe barked. “And don’t expect an invitation to the wedding.” Chloe headed to the door.

“One more thing darling,” Audrey called out. “You might want to check in with the family lawyer about the will. There might be a clause to help you with your shoestring budget.”

Chloe slammed the door behind her. She shouldn’t have lost her cool, but something about that woman drove her crazy. Even though she didn’t know her, her mother knew how to push her buttons. Being the bigger person was harder than she thought.


	5. The Budget

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe and Nathaniel learn more about Great Aunt Millie's will.

“Two million Euros?” Nathaniel scanned the document Chloe’s father’s lawyer handed to him. They were in his office to get the details of the inheritance. He and Chloe knew the basics, but Aunt Millie had a lot more fine print than they thought.

“Yes,” M. Robinson nodded. “Your aunt set that aside for your wedding budget. It would be more, but she wanted you to have a modest wedding.”

“I don’t even know what to do with one million Euros.” He slid the piece of paper across the desk. “I’m sure it will be modest.”

“Now,” M. Robinson adjusted his glasses. “You cannot elope, Millie was very adamant about that. She wanted to make sure your wedding was legitimate and that this money is used the right way. Now, I can’t police your marriage, but until you say I do, I will be keeping tabs on you to make sure this is legitimate.”

“Trust me, it is.” Chloe squeezed Nathaniel’s hand and smiled.

“As much as I want to believe that true love exists, I have to look at the facts.” M. Robinson turned his computer around to show them the screen.

“STRUGGLING CARTOONIST PROPOSES TO FALLEN HEIRESS FOR INHERITANCE”

“Those are all lies,” Nathaniel said. “I just learned about the inheritance over the weekend. And I am not struggling.”

“It also doesn’t help that both your father and mother came to see me before you two.” He said.

“Why were they here?” Chloe asked.

“Your father came by before your engagement to see how much money you can access before the wedding. And your mother came by a few days ago asking the same thing. I told them about the budget, but every penny of it goes towards the ceremony.”

“They’re not getting a dime,” Chloe pouted.

Nathaniel could believe Audrey snooping around about the money, but Andre? He told him months ago about his plans, and his first thought was getting his hands on her inheritance. This was the family he was marrying into whether he liked it or not. They would have to have a talk about supporting her father at some point.

“Now there is the issue of the prenuptial agreement,” he said. “Your aunt did not put in her will to sign one, but as your lawyer I highly recommend it.”

“Absolutely not,” Chloe crossed her arms over her chest. “It will give my mother another reason to think Nathaniel will take my money.”

“Now hold on.” Nathaniel placed his hand on his shoulder. He didn’t know what he was signing up for for when he proposed. But having a prenup was smart in this day and age, especially when there is a large some of money involved. He loved Chloe fiercely, but they needed to be smart about this. “We should hear him out.”

“What for? Are you planning divorcing me?”

“Of course not.”

“The prenup is designed to protect both of you financially,” M. Robinson chipped in. Mademoiselle Bourgeois I advise you to take this seriously.”

“We’ll talk about it in private,” Nathaniel assured him.

“All right,” he nodded. “I will file the paperwork to get your wedding budget. I will need from you a timeline in the next couple weeks.”

“Thank you,” Nathaniel stood up. Chloe remained seated and still pouting about the prenup. For a half second he saw the fourteen year old Chloe again. “Come on you’re Majesty.” He dragged her out of M. Robinson’s office.

“Why are you so against a prenup?” He said as they walked to Chloe’s apartment.

“It’s I don’t know,” she muttered. “I feel like it’s a time bomb.”

“Listen, I love you more than anybody else. But we both know the pressure we are going to face from our families about this. Especially yours. Did your parents sign a prenup?”

“No,” she shook her head. “My mom walked away with a lot of money and hefty alimony checks every month. But we’re not my parents. I trust you. No matter how bad gets. I can’t have this hanging over us.”

There was no winning this argument right now. Chloe was too stubborn. He had to approach this with a different angle. “We’ll table it for now.”

“Thank you,” she sighed. “I’m off for the rest of the day Do you want to come home with me?”

“Maybe later. I’m going to get some work done at the bakery. I’ll let you know when I’m done.”

“Great,” she kissed him. “I’ll see you later.”

Nathaniel walked a few blocks to the bakery. Sabine Cheng stood behind the counter with a friendly smile on her face. “What can I get you?”

“An espresso please.”

“Coming right up.” Sabine made the best espressos at the bakery. While he loved Chloe, she still struggled with the machine from time to time.

“How are you holding up?” Sabie asked.

“I’m doing all right,” he said. “We’re officially in wedding planning mode so it’s going to be crazy for a while.”

“We’ll tell Chloe we can help her out with whatever she needs. She’s like family.”

“Will do, thank you.” Nathaniel settled down in a seat with espresso and pulled out his tablet. With all the drama he’s webcomic updates were getting slower and slower. He couldn’t disappoint his fans, especially with a cartoon being created. He took his stylus and began to sketch a new villain character. His comic was about a group of superheroes forced to deal with real life after defeating the big bad. He drew a lot of the inspirations from the miraculous holders, with their permission of course, but ultimately took the story a different direction since Paris has been at peace for two years. Now after a year of peace his characters were about to fight a new villain for the next arc. He hinted at the arrival of a big bad for months, but he couldn’t get the character right. 

Nathaniel looked at his character design. The villain that was yet to be named had a run of the mill backstory about how the heroes ruined his life when fighting crime. He needed a more well rounded villain.

The front door opened and bakery fell silent. The sound of heels clicking against the hard floors echoed in the small space. Nathaniel glanced up from his tablet to see who entered. Audrey stood in front of the counter across from Sabine Cheng. Sabine’s expression changed from warm and friendly to stoic and cold in one second flat.

“Audrey, what a surprise. I thought I smelled sulfur in the distance.”

“Sabine, darling, you haven’t aged a day in twenty years.”

“I can’t say the same about you.” Sabine said. “Is your order for here or to go? I should let you know we don’t validate parking for brooms.”.

“If we’re done exchanging insults, I’d like to know if my daughter is working today.”

“Chloe is not here. Can you do everyone a favor and leave that poor girl alone.”

“Why does everyone think I’m the bad guy?”

“You ruined her engagement party.”

“I was doing the girl a favor,” Audrey scoffed. “Chloe needs to marry someone with status. Her father tarnished the Bourgeois name and it’s her responsibility to get back on the top of Paris’ social circles.”

“She doesn’t want that.”

“And how do you know what my daughter wants?”

“Because she lived in my home for over a year. We talked, I listened to her. Where were you when she lost everything?”

Audrey fell silent. Nathaniel couldn’t see what kind of expression she was making, but Sabine’s softened a little. He could tell she struck a chord. A few seconds passed before she spoke again. “I’ll have a large iced sugar free vanilla Latte with soy milk.”

“Anything else?” Sabine asked.

“That will be all.”

Sabine rang her up and began to make her order. Audrey turned around. Everyone in the bakery was staring at her. She slipped on her sunglasses and kept her head high.

“Nathan,” she nodded when she spotted him. The seating area in the bakery was small enough for everybody could hear their conversation, but Audrey didn’t seemed phased.

“Madame Bourgeois,” he replied.

“With all due respect, everything I said to Sabine is true and I’m not afraid to say it to your face. Chloe deserves better.”

“With all do respect Madame, your opinion doesn’t matter.”

“Fair enough, but If you hurt my daughter, I will destroy you and your career. You understand.”

“Not if she kills me first.” Nathaniel replied. “Chloe isn’t a child, she can make her own decisions. Do you even care about her happiness or is this all about your social standings?”

“Of course I care.”

“Then show it,” Nathaniel snapped. “If you want back into her life you have to prove yourself. It’s not going to be easy, Chloe is stubborn and she doesn’t take shit from anyone. But if you show her you want to be a part of her life maybe she'll let you in.”

“Thank you Nathaniel.” She finally said his name correctly. Maybe she was trying to improve. But she had a long way to go to makeup for the engagement party fiasco. “I don’t know where to start.”

“Maybe start with an explanation for why you never contacted her after the divorce.”

“She told you that?” Audrey said puzzled.

“She tells me everything…well almost everything,” he sighed. “Once you get over that hurdle, maybe you could get through to her.”

“Audrey,” Sabine called from behind the counter. “Your latte.”

“Oh yes,” Audrey turned on her heels and went to pick up her drink. She gave Nathaniel a once over before leaving the bakery.

Nathaniel tapped his stylus against his knee. He looked down at the character model for his villain and smirked. Maybe the inspiration for a well rounded villain was closer than he thought. He opened a new page and began to sketch.

*** 

Chloe laid on her back with a cool cloth on her face. She had no idea where to start with the wedding planning. Nathaniel ended their fight before it could really began A prenup was out of the questions. Nathaniel would never bleed her dry. She had to win this argument one way or another. She just needed some help.

She pressed 2 on her speed dail. “Yes Chloe.” Sabrina answered on the first ring.

“I need help planning the wedding.”

“I’m not a wedding planner.”

“You’re an event coordinator, a wedding is an event. I just got back from Daddy’s lawyers office. Great Aunt Millie gave me a wedding budget, I’d like to hire you for your services.”

“So wait, you’re going to pay me actual money to do everything for you?”

“Well not everything…”

“I’ll draw up a contract,” she said quickly. “Thank you so much.”

“Don’t mention it. I need to run everything buy Nathaniel first, but I’m sure he’ll be on board. With the cartoon in pre production, he’s going to be crazy busy these next few months.”

“Have you thought of a date.”

“We talked about next summer. Heads up Esther wants a Jewish ceremony so we should keep that in mind while planning.”

“Noted.”

“One more thing…”

“Sign a prenup.”

“How did you know I was going to ask that?”

“I know everything.”

“You’re no help,” Chloe muttered. Maybe Sabrina wasn’t the best person to ask for advice on this subject matter.

“I’m just looking out for you,” Sabrina said. “I still can’t believe you’re getting married.”

“I know,” Chloe lifted her left hand to examine the engagement ring. “This all happened because of you, you know that.”

“I’ll take partial credit. I told him to stay away from you, but I’m glad he didn’t listen.”

“I am too,” she smiled. “I’ll talk to you later. Bye.” Chloe hung up.

She needed one more opinion on the prenup situation. She dialed her father next, he would give her some clarity. “Hello,” he answered on the first ring.

“Hi Daddy.”

“Hello baby girl. What can I do for you.”

“Why didn’t you sign a prenup before you married mom?”

Her father paused. “Is Nathaniel giving you trouble over signing a prenup?”

“No, I have the opposite problem. He wants one.”

“Then signing a prenup shouldn’t be a problem,” he said. “You’re mother was a different woman when I met her. Believe it or not she came from humble beginnings. I thought I could trust her, but I didn’t see her thirst for fortune and social standing until it was too late.”

“Are you saying I can’t trust Nathaniel.”

“No,” he retaliated. “Nathaniel is a fine young man. He really loves you. The fact that he was willing to marry you when you had nothing.” He paused. “That being said…people change. And over time you might drift apart. Having a prenup is just smart.”

“You’re no help,” Chloe scoffed.

“Why are you so against a prenup?”

“Because it will drive another wedge between us. I kept this inheritance from him, I don’t want him to think all I care about is getting my money back and keeping it. Plus if mother found out it will give her another reason to think Nathaniel’s scamming me.”

“Why do you care what she thinks?”

“I–” she couldn’t think of a reason. “I don’t know.”

How could this woman who has been absent from her life for so long evoke such strong emotions from her. Why should she care what her mother thinks?

“Audrey’s arrival has been difficult. “

“Why didn’t she call me?” Chloe felt a tear rolling down her cheek. “When I was little I used to make up excuses about why she never reached out. Maybe she lost her phone and didn’t memorize the hotel number or my birthday cards just got lost in the mail. I never told you this, but I snuck into your office once and found her email address. I drafted hundreds of emails to her asking for motherly advice. Some of them we just me begging for her to come back, but I never had the courage to press send. I know it’s silly, but when she left there was this hole in my heart. Over time I learned to ignore it, but when she walked into the party the other day everything came flooding back.“

Her father didn’t respond. “Daddy?”

“Yes, I’m still here.”

“I’m not saying I want her back in my life. That ship sailed, but now that she’s back, I need to figure out what I want.”

“Yes, of course, take your time.”

“Daddy are you okay?” This isn’t the first time he half paid attention to whatever she was saying. But this felt different. He seemed distracted.

“Yes, I am fine,” he said. “Hopefully your mother won’t be around for too long. I will try to avoid her the best I can at the hotel, but it will be hard. Be careful around her you don’t want to have any unnecessary drama before your nuptials.”

“Thanks Daddy.”

“And please, do consider creating a prenup. It’s just the smart thing to do.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too Daddy. Bye.” She hung up the phone and sighed. She was 0-5 on the prenup argument. She hated being wrong, but had some time before Nathaniel brings it up again. She would have to do some research before getting on board completely, but first they needed to start planning the ceremony.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sabine Cheng is SAVAGE. Audrey and Sabine's relationship is inspired by Caption Holt and Madeleine Wunch from Brooklyn 99. I'll dive into that in later chapters.


	6. The Dress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe tries on wedding dresses.

Chloe stood in front of the mirror in awe. The white dress was a bit snug around the bust, but she looked like a princess. She twirled around a bit and the large skirt fluttered around her. For the first time since the engagement party she felt like this was really happening. The past few weeks were so stressful, Sabrina had the idea to try on dresses to blow off some steam.

The saleswoman, Regina knocked on the door. “Mademoiselle Bourgeois do you need any help?”

“No, I’m good.” She opened the door. Regina lead her out to the front room where Marinette, Sabrina and Alya sat.

“Oh my God Chloe you look amazing.” Sabrina squealed. She snapped a few pictures on her phone.

“Thank you,” she twirled again. She liked the dress, but it didn’t feel right. She knew she wouldn’t fall in love with the first dress she tried. She looked like a knock off Kate Middleton. The dress was strikingly similar to what the Duchess of Cambridge wore on her big day. She studied herself in the mirror once more and frowned. No, this wasn’t the dress.

“What’s with you face?” Alya asked.

“Huh?”

“You don’t seem too excited.”

“Oh,” Chloe forced a smile. “It’s just not the dress, that’s all.”

“We’ll we have several others to choose from.” Regina chimed in. “With your budget the sky’s the limit. I have a lovely Vera Wang on the main floor, I’ll pull it for you.” Regina stepped away to find the dress.

“What’s really the matter?” Marinette said once Regina was out of earshot.

“I don’t know,” Chloe shrugged. “I watched so many of these wedding shows and I feel like something is missing. I don’t know what yet.”

“You don’t have to buy anything today,” Sabrina said. “You haven’t even picked a date for the wedding. Don’t stress too much about the dress today; you have plenty of time. When you find the one you will know.”

Regina returned with a large puffy ball gown in her arms. “This is the Vera Wang I was telling you about.”

“Thank you,” Chloe nodded. “I’ll be right back.” Chloe walked back to the dressing room and peeled off the Kate Middleton knock off. She slipped into the Vera Wang, Again it was too tight, she needed to ask for a bigger sample size next time. She could always buy the dress a size up

Chloe felt like a doll in the white dress. The puffy skirt filled the dressing room entirely, she could barely move without knocking hitting the wall. Part of her didn’t want to show the girls. This was a hard no. But in the spirit of dress shopping she decided to go anyway. Chloe carefully lifted up the skirt of the dress and made her way out of the door.

“Leave now.” Chloe heard Sabrina’s sharp whisper from the distance.

Chloe stepped out onto the floor. Her mother stood with her bridesmaids holding a glass of champagne. They were all clearly arguing low enough so the whole showroom didn’t hear.

She charged towards her mother. “What are you doing here?”

The women fell silent. “I came to see you,” her mother smiled.

“How did you find me?”

“You’re easy to track when you are back on the radar.” She held out her phone to show her a tweet of her in her Kate Middleton knock off dress. “You’re back in the spotlight now, remember that darling.”

“Just because you know how to find me doesn’t mean you should.”

“Chloe…” Sabrina warned her.

“You’re right.” Chloe took a deep breath. “Let’s not make a scene mother. Please go home.”

“Not until I talk to you.”

“I’m kind of busy at the moment,” Chloe gestured to her dress.

“Vera Wang?” Audrey snorted. “I love the woman to pieces, but there is no way you’re walking down the aisle in that.”

“Mother!”

“I’m being honest.” She sat down on the couch. “Isn’t this what mother and daughters are supposed to do. Go shopping together?”

“You missed twenty years of shopping with me. You’re not going to start now.” Chloe turned on her heels and heading back to the dressing room.

“It wasn’t my choice.” Audrey shouted.

Chloe stopped dead in her tracks. “What do you mean not your choice?” She spun around. “You chose to leave, you chose to not contact me, you decided you didn’t want to be a mother anymore.”

“So those are the lies your father’s been feeding you?”

“Lies?”

“You’re father completely erased me from your life after the divorce. I tried to visit you, but with your father’s influence over the city he made it impossible. He had the judge in his pocket when during your custody hearing. I wasn’t allowed to see you until you were eighteen, but when the time came I thought you hated me. I sent you a birthday card and Christmas presents every year until you were sixteen. Nathaniel told me you never received them.”

Tears rolled down Chloe’s face as she listened to her mother’s words. They couldn’t be true. No, she left her and never came back. Those were the facts. “Why? Are you back now?”

“Because my baby girl is getting married,” Audrey touched Chloe’s cheek and wiped off her tears. “I missed too many important milestones in your life. There is nothing in this world that will keep me away from missing it.”

“You need to go,” Chloe backed away.

“Chloe…”

“No,” she shouted. “You can just show up in my life with some bullshit excuse to why you disappeared for twenty years. Leave now.”

“Talk to your father,” Audrey said. “I dare him to try to lie to you again.”

*** 

Nathaniel left work early as soon as he received the SOS text from Sabrina. He brought a pint of Chloe’s favorite ice cream and an action movie to get her mind off of her mother. He told her to talk to Chloe, but bombarding while wedding dress shopping was not what he meant.

Audrey disappeared for weeks after their initial conversation at the bakery. Nathaniel just thought she gave up, but the staff at the hotel said she was still checked in. He thought she was respecting their wishes to stay out of their way. But in typical Audrey fashion she had to swing in at the worst possible time and ruin everything.

Nathaniel used his spare key to open Chloe’s apartment. Pollen buzzed in his face as soon as he entered.

“How is she?” He asked.

“Not well,” Pollen replied. “She’s not crying or throwing a tantrum. She’s unresponsive.”

This was bad. Chloe wore her emotions on her sleeve. When she was upset all of Paris would know. Whatever her mother said really did a number on her.

“Wish me luck.” Nathaniel knocked on her bedroom door. “Chloe?” She didn’t respond. “I’m coming in.”

Chloe was huddled under her covers, unmoving. He sat on the edge of the bed, careful not to sit on her. Seeing her like this was like a punch in the gut. He shouldn’t have told her mother to try to make things right. He should have seen this coming.

“Hey Chloe,” he said gently. “I have Rocky Road and _Die Hard_.” Chloe didn’t answer. He lowered the duvet from her head. “Come on, talk to me. I know your mother is the worst, but–”

“No.” She cut him off. “It’s just that…Mother told me after she left Daddy blocked all communication with me. He basically banned her from Paris.”

“That can’t be true.”

“I don’t know what to believe.”

“Have you talked to you father?”

“He keeps calling, but I can’t bring myself to pick it up. I don’t know what to say,” she covered her head again. “I’m just going to stay here until the wedding.”

“Do you not know what to say or afraid of his answer?”

“I don’t know. I’ve had this image of my painted in my head for so long. The vicious gold digger who left me and my father without a trace. Daddy has always been there for me, he supported me through the hard times and tried his best to fill the hole my mother left. If she is telling the truth I don’t think I can look at him the same way.”

Nathaniel pursed his lips. This was bad, if the one person she trusted the most lied to her for twenty years, this could break her. He needed to be her rock if shit hits the fan.

“Scoot over,” he nudged her to the other side of the bed.

“What are you doing?” She groaned.

“Wallowing with you.” Nathaniel kicked off his shoes and joined her under the covers. He popped open the pint of ice cream and scooped. “Open.” She shook her head. “I know it’s your favorite.”

“No,” she pouted. “I’m gaining too much weight. I need to fit into my wedding dress.”

“You haven’t bought yours yet.”

Chloe rolled her eyes and opened her mouth. Nathaniel feed her the ice cream. “I’m scarred for life now,” she grumbled. “From now on I’ll associate wedding dress shopping with discovering my father lied to me for twenty years.”

Nathaniel and Chloe lied in silence for a few moments.

“Maybe you don’t need to go wedding dress shopping again.”

“Huh?”

“Marinette made her own wedding dress, why don’t you ask her to make yours.”

“I can’t. She’s swamped with rebranding Gabriel’s with Adrien and launching her first line. I can’t put that on her.”

“It won’t hurt to ask. Plus we have it in the budget, to hire her and a team to make it.”

“Fine,” she took another bite of ice cream. “I’ll ask. But this is the last time we have ice cream in bed until the wedding night.”

“Is that a promise?” Nathaniel kissed her temple. Chloe’s face turned bright red. Nathaniel loved seeing her get flustered. She was finally getting back to her old self. “ _Die Hard_?”

“Christmas in July, you spoil me Mr. Kurtzberg.”

“Only the best for the future Mrs. Kurtzberg.”

Chloe grimace. “Yeah, you know I’m keeping my name right?”

“I had to try,” Nathaniel shrugged. He knew good and well Chloe Bourgeois wouldn’t give up her name. He wasn’t the type of man who would fight her on it. Just then his phone buzzed in his pocket. It had to be a text from Sabrina, he forgot to update her on Chloe’s mood. He pulled his phone out and checked the text. Nathaniel’s face fell flat. It was from Andre.

_Come to the hotel ASAP, I need to speak with you._

“What’s wrong?” Chloe asked.

Nathaniel sighed. He had to tell her. “It’s your father. He wants me to go to the hotel.”

Chloe dropped the Rocky Road on the side table and curled up into a ball again. “What does he want?”

“He didn’t say.”

Chloe popped back up. “Go to him.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“Please, I need to know what he has to say.”

“Then call him!”

“No,” she pouted. “It’s too soon. I need you to be a buffer. That way when I see him next I won’t be as upset. Please.” She gave him her saddest puppy dog eyes. How could he say no to those.

“Fine,” he sighed. “But this is the last time you put me in the middle of your family drama.”

After kissing her goodbye, Nathaniel walked to Le Grand Paris hotel from Chloe’s apartment. He knew this was a bad idea. Chloe needed to talk to her father in person. Not send him to be the middleman.

Nathaniel entered through the front door of the hotel. Andre sat in the lobby holding a large shoebox. He spotted Nathaniel and waved him over. “Thank you for meeting me,” Andre said. “How are you doing?”

“I’m all right,” he sat down. “My fiance is curled up in her bed with a pint of Rocky Road.”

“Audrey came by my room and told me everything. I’ve never seen that woman so angry in my life. But she’s right, Chloe deserves to know the truth.”

“So it is true.”

“More or less,” he nodded. “I did want I thought was right.”

“Then tell her yourself.”

“It’s not that easy,” he sighed. “This is for Chloe.” He handed him the box. “Tell her to come see me after she opens it.”

“You called me over to be an errand boy??” He rolled his eyes. “Both of you need to learn how to communicate with each other.” He took the box from him. “I don’t like to be in the middle of this family drama.”

“When are you going to realize you’re part of the family now?”


	7. The Box

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe opens the box

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey it's been a while. I wanted to remind everyone that this was written before we meet Audrey and Queen Bee in Season 2.

Chloe stared at the shoe box for hours after Nathaniel dropped it off. She couldn’t do it. Whatever was in that box could change everything. She had to do this alone. 

She sighed and opened the box. Inside were several envelopes addressed to Chloe. She picked up a pink envelope and opened it. It was generic birthday card with a big tiered cake with a large number 5 in the middle. Several bills fell onto her lap.

_Dear Chloe,_

_Happy Birthday. Thinking of you._

_Love Mom_

That was it?

Chloe dug through and opened an assortments of birthday and Christmas cards filled with money. They were all very generic and the note in them was always the same. “I love you. I miss you. I’m thinking of you.” Even so, if she had gotten these when she was supposed to it would have been enough. They would have given her hope that one day she would see her again. She could almost understand her father’s reason for keeping these from her.

At the bottom of the box was an opened letter envelope. On the outside, the letter was not addressed to Chloe, but to her butler Jean. It was dated a few months after her sixteenth birthday.

_Dear Chloe,_

_I hope this letter makes it to you. Addressed this to Jean to make sure this got to you. It’s been a little over thirteen years since I walked out of your life. Thirteen years since I said goodbye. Now that you are sixteen, I think you’re old enough to know why I left._

_I loved your father so much when we got married. But when your father began campaigning for mayor, there was a certain standard I had to uphold and become the pretty political trophy wife. I was expected to end my career as a fashion critic and give up my dreams of traveling because “Paris came first.”_

_Over time I began to resent your father and I became something I was not. I spent his money hoping to make a dent in his bottomless funds so he would notice me. And yes, I did become accustomed to the lifestyle. I won’t lie to you. When I divorced him I took as much as I could. If your father spun some tale about me being a golddigger, it was his own doing. But taking his money came with a price. Per the divorce agreement, I was never to see you again until your eighteenth birthday._

_That being said, I found a way back into Paris next month. Your father has his eyes and ears all around the city so this won’t be easy. Meet me at the Eiffel Tower at noon on June 12th. I have a present for you. Don’t worry about finding me, I won’t be recognizable. I will look for you._

_I eagerly await our reunion._

_Love Mom._

Hot tears rolled down Chloe’s face. She tried to see her. She risked getting into Paris to try to see her years ago. If her father had the letter in the box he definitely read it. Chloe thought back to that summer. Her father surprised her with an impromptu trip to London for a week. He knew her mother would be in Paris and looking for her.

Chloe took a deep breath, wiped away her tears and got out of bed. It was time to face reality. She showered, and put on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt before leaving her apartment.

She walked to Le Grand Paris Hotel with the letter clutched to her chest. She rehearsed what she was going to say dozens of times before walking into the lobby. Her father stood at the front desk talking with the concierge. 

Chloe took a deep breath and stepped forward.

“Father,” she said sharply, getting the attention of everyone in the lobby. “We need to talk.”

Andre lowered his head. “Let’s go to my room.”

“No, there,” she pointed to the couches where several guests were sitting. She couldn’t wait until they got upstairs, the elevator ride would be too awkward.

“But the guests…”

They were already making a scene. All Chloe needed to do was channel her inner ice queen and the lobby would be the clear in an instant. She turned to the guests on the couches. “This is a private conversations. Do you know who my father is?”

“Chloe sweetheart, I’m not the mayor anymore and I don’t own the hotel, the shareholders–”

Chloe stared down the guests until they fled to the elevator. She smirked and took a seat. “Sit.”

“Chloe I don’t like your attitude.”

“Sit. Now father.”

Andre sank into the couch. “I see Nathaniel gave you the box.”

Chloe nodded. “I am. So angry with you. You kept thirteen years of cards in an out of season Jimmy Choo box. There were over a thousand Euros in there by the way. Mom said she bought presents.

“You did receive those. You didn’t know they were from your mother.”

“Do you remember what they–”

“It’s been years Chloe, and I’m an old man. Please.” A silence hung between the two for several seconds before Andre spoke again. “There were a few toys during the early years. I remember she set a watch one year. It’s all so hazy.”

“Why was this open?”

“Ah, that letter. I was wondering if I should give it to you. I put it under the cards to soften the blow. Years ago, I intercepted it before it could get to Jean. I thought it was strange that he received a letter at the hotel. I was right to be suspicious.”

“So the trip to London?”

Andre sighed. “It was to get you out of Paris until she left. I wanted her to think you didn’t want to see her again. So I wrote back as Jean when we came back and told her you refused to see her. That’s when the cards stopped coming.

“So she was right when she said you turned her into what she is today.”

“Your mother is a grown woman, she needs to take responsibility for her actions. Since arriving at your engagement party all she’s done was cause trouble. I will not be blamed for it.”

“What was she like? Before you became mayor?”

“She was a lot like you. But she had a love for fashion and traveling. As the mayor’s wife I needed her to stay in the city for galas, fundraisers and other political events. After we had you she felt more and more trapped. Please understand, she did love you very much. I’m sorry if this is hard to hear. I’ve spent years destroying your image of her, but now that she’s here, maybe she can undo some of that damage.”

Chloe glanced down at the letter. What would have happened if her father never stole the letter? Would she have gone?

At sixteen she was in such a weird place. She was Queen Bee, her friendships with the team made her so happy. School was still rough with Marinette in her class, but what did she care, she had Ladybug. She also had her first boyfriend, first heartbreak and several moments where she needed a mother’s love and support. What if her mother was there for all of that?

No.

She couldn’t change the past.

She had to look to the future, and right now, it was looking pretty bright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for less Nathaniel in this chapter. I felt like Chloe had to face this on her own. There will be more ChloNath Fluff and wedding planning to come.


	8. The Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe attempts to reconnect with Audrey.

Nathaniel worked on character designs for his comic in his office. Adding the mother as the new villain went well with his editor, but he felt a little guilty using his future mother in law as the model. He changed her design slightly to distinguish the two, but anyone who knew him would know where he got the inspiration. He had a lot of explaining to do before the character debuts. He could see the headline now: “Future husband of Heiress Pokes Fun of the In-Laws.”

He checked his phone for messages from Chloe. Since he left her alone with the box last night, he’d been worried sick. But this was something she wanted to face on her own. She needed to understand the past to better her future relationship with her mother.

“Time for coffee,” Nathaniel shut his computer.

Chloe had a shift at the bakery at this time, however he doubted she’d actually be there. She called out yesterday, so it was likely some was covering for her again today. He had to go check, either way he wanted something sweet from the bakery.

He gathered his things and walked to the bakery. It was less busy in the afternoon. Marinette was assisting a customer when she spotted Nathaniel standing in line. She frowned for a half a second before, plastering back on her customer service face as she handed over a box of pastries.

Nathaniel stepped up to the counter. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine, just worried about Chloe,” Marinette signed. “This is the second day in the row she called out. Ever since her mom…”

“I know.”

“Bourgeois family drama, right?”

“Right,” Nathaniel chuckled weakly. Andre was right, it was his drama now. He’d have to get used to it.

“The usual?”

“Of course.” He fished out a few Euros and handed them to her.

Marinette started making his drink. “By the way, even though I’m insanely busy with the the relaunch, if Chloe wants me to design her wedding dress let me know.”

“We talked about that the other day. Sorry so much has happened.”

“No worries. To be honest I’ve been waiting for her to ask me for months. I just assumed she was too proud to ask.”

“Not it’s not that,” he said. “She knows things have been insane after the wedding. If we didn’t have the wedding budget, we might have asked for the favor.”

“I feel like there’s an insult in there somewhere.”

“No…I don’t think… what I’m trying to say is now that we can afford something without the massive discount you would have given us, we didn’t want to add anything to your plate.”

“It’s okay. Now that you can afford it I can charge you full price.” Marinette placed her hand on the counter and leaned in. “Truth be told, we need the publicity. Designing the dress for the wedding of the century would boost sales and get the company in the black.”

“Is it that bad?”

The bell on the front door jingled. Nathaniel glanced behind him the only customer in line was a man in a green tracksuit.

“I’ll be just a minute,” Marinette said.

“Take your time,” the man said in a thick Italian accent. He bent down an looked a the pastries displayed.

Marinette packed up Nathaniel’s order and handed it to him. “As I was saying, it’s pretty bad. For starters the founder of the company was a supervillain who terrorized the city for nearly five year The marketing team thinks it will be hard to bounce back from, especially since we’re renaming the company Agreste’s. It’s like the name is tainted. Adrien wanted to keep the family name. He invested a lot of money into this rebranding because didn’t want his father’s employee’s to suffer. I won’t let it fail.”

“And you won’t. I’ll talk to Chloe once this thing with her mom blows over.”

“Thank you.”

Nathaniel took is coffee and pastries and walked out of the bakery. He didn’t plan on staying to work. He had an office for that now. The only times he sketched in the bakery was when Chloe was working.

Nathaniel nearly tripped on his shoelaces and a little coffee spilled on shit. “Crap.” He stopped to tie his shoe, out of the corner of his eye, the man in a green tracksuit stood close by looking in a shop window. He didn’t have a single pastry from the bakery. An eerie feeling washed over Nathaniel. He stood up and glanced over his shoulder again.

The man was gone.

***

Chloe placed two wine glasses on the coffee table. After her mother’s performance at the engagement party, maybe wine wasn’t a good idea. No, she was going to need a glass or two if she wanted to get through this conversation.

Audrey was already fifteen minutes late, Chloe was about to call her when she heard a knock at her door. Strange, she never heard the buzzer.

“Here we go,” Chloe muttered as she opened the door.

“I’ve been standing outside for five minutes waiting for your doorman to let me in.” Audrey stood in the doorway. She wore a white pantsuit, black hat and round dark sunglasses. The only color she had here her bright red lips. She dressed way too high fashion for a chat with her daughter in her small apartment.

“I don’t have a doorman.”

“Than who was the small man who opened the door for me.”

“Probably a neighbor?”

“Oh,” Audrey took off her sunglasses. “Are you going to let me in?”

“Of course. Have a seat.” She gestured to the couch.

Audrey’s face contorted into a mixture of disgust and confusion as she surveyed the apartment. For a half a second, Chloe felt embarrassed, but she quickly shut it down. Why would she be embarrassed about an apartment she pays for herself? That deep down urge to please her mother bubbled to the surface and she did not like it at all.

“Would you like something to drink?”

“I’ll have a vodka tonic on the rocks.”

“I have wine.”

“What year?”

Chloe grabbed the bottle off the counter and glanced at the label. “2017.”

“That will do,” Audrey said through her fake smile. Lord forbid the great Audrey Bourgeois drank a wine from this decade. Chloe poured he mother a glass and watched her mother take a sip of the cheap wine. “Thank you.” Audrey placed her glass on the table, clearly displeased.

Chloe took a big gulp of her own wine before starting. “So I got your cards. Daddy kept them in a box all these years. Thank you for the money.”

“Consider it an early wedding present.”

Chloe couldn’t tell if she was being serious or not. Either way, she had to push on. “Listen, I’m not going to pretend that seeing those cards will magically fix whatever is broken between us. There are so many reasons why I shouldn’t give you a second chance. You insulted my fiance and embarrassed me in front of my friends, twice.” She paused to let it sink in for a moment before continuing. “But I can’t ignore the fact that Daddy kept you from me and that you in some strange way are trying to reconnect. All I can say is, if you are going to be around, this might be the only opportunity I have to really get to know you and decide for myself if I want you back in my life.”

Audrey smiled. “I’m glad you came around.”

“Where have you been, mom?”

“America mostly,” she started. “I worked with a few fashion magazines and build a reputations. I moved to Italy a five years ago and started my own magazine. Investors said I was crazy, because print was practically dead, but I didn’t listen. That little venture failed…” her voice trailed off. “After that I started traveling around Europe before I came back here.”

Chloe nodded politely. Audrey wouldn’t have accomplished so many things if she had stayed with Andre. It pained her to know her mother’s life was better without her.

“I would have taken you to America if I could,” Audrey said as if she read her mind.

“But you couldn’t be a fashion mogul with a toddler attached to your legs.” Chloe said. “Let’s not talk about the past.”

“All right, tell me about Nathaniel. What’s so special about him?”

“He was there for me when I was at my lowest. He saw the good in me when no one else would and helped me become the best version of myself. He’s a little shy, but so funny. And his art…” A smile formed on her lips. “He has a beautiful soul and when I think it’s impossible to love him more, he surprises me every day.”

“Wow.”

“I’m scared mom,” She confessed. “I know how to be a good wife.”

“You’re asking the wrong person, but I can tell from the few times we met that he loves you fiercely. I only wish I had a love like that in my life.”

“Did you ever love Daddy?”

“When we were young, yes, but people change. Sometimes the timing is wrong. He wanted to grow up and I didn’t. Some marriages just don’t workout.” Audrey took another sip of wine. “Chloe this is absolutely terrible.”

“It’s what I can afford right now.”

“What about the wedding money?”

Chloe tensed. She knew it was a matter of time before that topic came up. “The lawyers are keeping track of the receipts. Every dimes has to go to the ceremony.”

“Oh,” she frowned. “No matter. The wedding is soon enough. You’ll be back in the lap of luxury before you know it.”

“I like my apartment. It’s the first place I paid for with my own money. My lease will be up before the wedding, so I’ll have to figure that out eventually. Nathaniel and I haven’t really talked about where we’re living after the wedding. There are a lot of thing we haven’t talked about. I might be putting off school now, so I can pay for tuition with the inheritance.”

“School?”

“I’m didn’t finish university. I want to go back to get a degree in business.”

Audrey laughed. “You don’t need a degree to do business if you’re rich.”

“I do if I want to do well.”

“I guess you didn’t learn that lesson from your father.”

“Sabine actually. She became a pseudo-mentor when I was living with her and Tom. Why does she hate you?”

“That’s a story for another time,” Audrey checked her watch. “I should get going. I have a hair appointment in twenty minutes.”

“Okay, yeah.”

“I can see myself out.” Audrey walked to the door and opened it. “If you want to do this again, just call. I’m not going anywhere.”

Chloe slumped back down on the couch. Her first attempt to reconnect with her mother went better than she anticipated. It wasn’t perfect, but they weren’t trying to force anything. This could work. As long as there weren’t any more surprises.

But given Audrey’s track record, it was only a matter of time before she found a new way to disappoint Chloe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to kudos and comment!  
> Yell at me on [tumblr/a>](http://miraculoussideblog.tumblr.com/)


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